The class fee is $8. Registration is required by Sunday. Phone registration: 210-0100 or by e-mail: huskbiz@yahoo.com.

Area chef to give free cooking demo

John Pirrello, chef at Frankie Bones Restaurant and Lounge in Asheville, will provide a free cooking demonstration at the Pardee Health Education Center at the Blue Ridge Mall from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. June 30. Registration is required by calling 866-790-WELL (9355).

Pirrello will demonstrate ways to cook foods typically considered unhealthy in a healthy way. The Frankie Bones chef will use his own recipes to show healthy ways of cooking comfort foods.

Participants will receive copies of Pirrello's recipes so they can prepare these foods at home. All attendees of the cooking event will be given discount coupons to the popular south Asheville restaurant. Registration is required and space is limited for this free cooking demo.

For more information about the center or to find a physician, call 1-866-790-WELL (9355) or visit www.pardeehospital.org.

Center plans event with culinary herbs

The Bullington Center is playing host to a program, “Growing and Using Culinary Herbs,” from 3 to 4:30 p.m. July 8.

Learn tips on growing edible herbs in the center's herb garden and then feast on a variety of delicious culinary creations made with herbs by Master Gardeners Betty Lockwood and Jane Davis. It it $20 to register; call 698-6104.

Season's Restaurant offering classes

One of Season's chefs will teach attendees how to make an entree and a dessert. At the completion of the class, a lunch including an entree, dessert and a beverage will be served.

The cost of the class and lunch is $30 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Reserve a spot by calling 696-9094.

French summer wine dinner set for July

Blue Water Seafood and Wine Cellar, 532 Kanuga St., will have a French summer dinner at 6 p.m. July 12. Philippe Bourgeois of the Bourgeois Family Wines will lead diners through an array of his French wine imports paired with Chef Matt Gruber's dishes.

The menu will focus on fresh seafood dishes indicative of the Loire Valley and the Mediterranean cuisine of France. One non-seafood entree will be included. Call Blue Water for pricing and more details at 697-0503. Seating is limited.

Culinary school

to ramp up in July

The Seasonal School of Culinary Arts at Warren Wilson College in Asheville will offer two weeks of intensive hands-on instruction, complete with wine tastings, artisanal beer tastings, sessions of food songs and stories, morning walks, forays into the garden to identify and gather ingredients, a cookbook to take home and many other surprises.

The first week, July 11-17, of the Asheville sessions will be centered on experimenting with the ingredients one might find in a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) market basket. The second week, July 18-24, will focus on creative ways to cook for those around us with specific health challenges. Each day consists of a three-hour class with a master chef, a gourmet lunch and a recreational afternoon/evening session.

Enrollment is $1,400 per week. A bridge session expedition to the Biltmore Estate Winery, with lunch at the Wine Bistro, will be offered on July 17, for $250. Opening nights, which include a lecture and reception with Chef Denny Trantham on July 11 and Chef Michael Gentry on July 18 are open to the public.

FABA announces business expo

The Fletcher Area Business Association will hold its fifth annual business expo, “A Taste of Fletcher ... and Beyond,” from 4 to 7 p.m. Sept. 21, at the Lelia Patterson Center, 1111 Howard Gap Road, Fletcher.

Vendor tables for the expo are available to local merchants and service providers in the health care, financial services, home and personal services, gifts and home decor and business-to-business industries.

Participants will have the opportunity to enjoy samples from area restaurants and food retailers and to register for door prizes and free giveaways from event vendors.

The cost for vendors is $75 per table for members and $95 for nonmembers if registered by July 31. Effective Aug. 1, the rate is $85 for FABA members and $105 for non-members. For vendor registration, or membership information, contact Tenni Arslanyan at adminassistant@fletcherbusiness.org or 828-273-5643. For more information, visit www.fletcherbusiness.org.

Editor's note: Do you have some food news you would like to share? Please e-mail your news at least 10 days before our Wednesday publication date to lifestyle@blueridgenow.com. If you have a photo, please send it as a jpeg attachment.

<p>Lifestyle and health coach Janice Husk will present a Healthy Meals in Minutes class at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Earth Fare, 1956 Hendersonville Road, Asheville.</p><p>Join Husk for summer menu ideas: quinoa and avocado salad with dried fruit, toasted almonds and lemon-cumin vinaigrette; rainbow chard with pine nuts, parmesan and basil; and pasta pesto frittatas.</p><p>The class fee is $8. Registration is required by Sunday. Phone registration: 210-0100 or by e-mail: huskbiz@yahoo.com.</p><h3>Area chef to give free cooking demo</h3>
<p>John Pirrello, chef at Frankie Bones Restaurant and Lounge in Asheville, will provide a free cooking demonstration at the Pardee Health Education Center at the Blue Ridge Mall from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. June 30. Registration is required by calling 866-790-WELL (9355).</p><p>Pirrello will demonstrate ways to cook foods typically considered unhealthy in a healthy way. The Frankie Bones chef will use his own recipes to show healthy ways of cooking comfort foods.</p><p>Participants will receive copies of Pirrello's recipes so they can prepare these foods at home. All attendees of the cooking event will be given discount coupons to the popular south Asheville restaurant. Registration is required and space is limited for this free cooking demo.</p><p>For more information about the center or to find a physician, call 1-866-790-WELL (9355) or visit www.pardeehospital.org.</p><h3>Center plans event with culinary herbs</h3>
<p>The Bullington Center is playing host to a program, “Growing and Using Culinary Herbs,” from 3 to 4:30 p.m. July 8.</p><p>Learn tips on growing edible herbs in the center's herb garden and then feast on a variety of delicious culinary creations made with herbs by Master Gardeners Betty Lockwood and Jane Davis. It it $20 to register; call 698-6104.</p><p>The Bullington Center is at 33 Upper Red Oak Trail. Info: www.bullingtoncenter.org</p><h3>Season's Restaurant offering classes</h3>
<p>Season's Restaurant at Highland Lake Inn, 86 Lily Pad Lane, Flat Rock is offering a cooking class and lunch at 11 a.m. July 10 and Aug. 7.</p><p>One of Season's chefs will teach attendees how to make an entree and a dessert. At the completion of the class, a lunch including an entree, dessert and a beverage will be served.</p><p>The cost of the class and lunch is $30 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Reserve a spot by calling 696-9094.</p><h3>French summer wine dinner set for July</h3>
<p>Blue Water Seafood and Wine Cellar, 532 Kanuga St., will have a French summer dinner at 6 p.m. July 12. Philippe Bourgeois of the Bourgeois Family Wines will lead diners through an array of his French wine imports paired with Chef Matt Gruber's dishes.</p><p>The menu will focus on fresh seafood dishes indicative of the Loire Valley and the Mediterranean cuisine of France. One non-seafood entree will be included. Call Blue Water for pricing and more details at 697-0503. Seating is limited.</p><p><b>Culinary school</p><p>to ramp up in July</p><p>The Seasonal School of Culinary Arts at Warren Wilson College in Asheville will offer two weeks of intensive hands-on instruction, complete with wine tastings, artisanal beer tastings, sessions of food songs and stories, morning walks, forays into the garden to identify and gather ingredients, a cookbook to take home and many other surprises.</p><p>The first week, July 11-17, of the Asheville sessions will be centered on experimenting with the ingredients one might find in a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) market basket. The second week, July 18-24, will focus on creative ways to cook for those around us with specific health challenges. Each day consists of a three-hour class with a master chef, a gourmet lunch and a recreational afternoon/evening session.</p><p>This year's Asheville line-up includes Grove Park Inn's executive chef Denny Trantham, Flying Frog's executive chef Vijay Shastri, Fig's Bistro's executive chef Bill Klein, Biltmore Doubletree's executive chef Todd Levick, Table at Crestwood's executive chef Chuck Nelson, award-winning caterer Laurey Masterton, Everyone Cooks' Michael Gentry, Picasso's Plate's Chris Aquilino, Discover Italian's Wally Maria Mazzucco, Log Cabin Cooking's Barbara Swell, pastry expert Cynthia Pierce, Montford Walk-In Bakery's Jennifer Thomas, private chef Dee Dee Arthur, author and food blogger Debby Maugans, Williams-Sonoma instructor Mary Collins-Shepard, caterer Karen Ferrel, Hawaiian luau specialist Patrick Landeza, edible landscape artist Nan Chase, environmental specialist Mark Brenner, wine expert Eberhard Heide, master brewer Brian Cole, herbalist and garden manager Diana Schmitt McCall, Asheville Slow Food cornerstone Eve Davis, Warren Wilson Dean of Work Ian Robertson and gastronomist director Susi Gott Seguret.</p><p>Enrollment is $1,400 per week. A bridge session expedition to the Biltmore Estate Winery, with lunch at the Wine Bistro, will be offered on July 17, for $250. Opening nights, which include a lecture and reception with Chef Denny Trantham on July 11 and Chef Michael Gentry on July 18 are open to the public.</p><p>Info: 828-301-2792, e-mail ssca@schoolofculinaryarts.org, or visit www.schoolofculinaryarts.org.</p><h3>FABA announces business expo</h3>
<p>The Fletcher Area Business Association will hold its fifth annual business expo, “A Taste of Fletcher ... and Beyond,” from 4 to 7 p.m. Sept. 21, at the Lelia Patterson Center, 1111 Howard Gap Road, Fletcher.</p><p>Vendor tables for the expo are available to local merchants and service providers in the health care, financial services, home and personal services, gifts and home decor and business-to-business industries.</p><p>Participants will have the opportunity to enjoy samples from area restaurants and food retailers and to register for door prizes and free giveaways from event vendors.</p><p>The cost for vendors is $75 per table for members and $95 for nonmembers if registered by July 31. Effective Aug. 1, the rate is $85 for FABA members and $105 for non-members. For vendor registration, or membership information, contact Tenni Arslanyan at adminassistant@fletcherbusiness.org or 828-273-5643. For more information, visit www.fletcherbusiness.org.</p><p>Editor's note: Do you have some food news you would like to share? Please e-mail your news at least 10 days before our Wednesday publication date to lifestyle@blueridgenow.com. If you have a photo, please send it as a jpeg attachment.</p>